2008 Bristol Super Chevy Show - Thunderin' In Thunder Valley

The Super Chevy Show Action At Thunder Valley Raceway Was Hotter Than Ever

The complex that is Bruton Smith's Bristol Motorsports Park is an oasis for the roundy-round and quarter-mile faithful alike. Cut straight through the hills of Tennessee, Thunder Valley Raceway is a one-of-a-kind stage for tire scorching excitement with the shadow that is the Bristol Speedway as a backdrop. Thousands made the trip to the strip, which was threatened by rain all weekend, but a washout on Friday did not dampen spirits or spectators.

Tremec True Street saw 21 cars line up for the tour around town but to everyone's surprise, ended up being a left-turn only affair around the World's Fastest Half Mile. We all enjoy different forms of motorsports but I doubt a single person would pass up the opportunity to take a few laps on the same ground that Dale Earnhardt, Richard Petty, and Tony Stewart ran fender to fender with some of the best in the business.

3/23

After just about every competitor performed a John Force burnout across the start/finish line, it was back to the drag strip for a trio of back-to-back passes. Three competitors battled it out for the top spot as John Robinson averaged a 10.105 e.t. in his '71 Camaro, taking home the 10-second trophy. David Dockery in his '71 Nova and John Silver's '85 S-10 were neck and neck after making all high 9-second passes one after another. Anxiety set in as they waited for the final tally and after what seemed to be decades, True Street organizer Jeff Taylor announced the winner and runner-up. The S-10 proved to be the big dog averaging a 9.705 elapsed time, nudging out the Nova with a 9.796.

The 2009 Super Chevy Show schedule has recently been made official by AutoStar Productions. Some relocating has been done for 2009, including a stop at the newly refurbished Palm Beach International Raceway (formerly known as Moroso Motorsports Park), and the recently finished zMax Dragway in Charlotte, North Carolina. The season ends at Bristol, and we'll be happy to see you there.

MORE PHOTOS

VIEW FULL GALLERY

xclose

2008 Bristol Super Chevy Show - Thunderin' In Thunder Valley

Ken "The Kid" Walsh dominated the Aeromotive Nitro Coupe category, clinching the championship by 125 points over second-place finisher Randy Adler. A rule change allowing twin-screw style blowers in 2009 should shake up the competition and make for some exciting racing in the season to come.

Friday brought clouds and intermittent rain, but that did not stop people from cruising through the car corral and swap meet for some discount goodies. This family was having a blast picking out their next project car.

David Dockery has his Nova flying in Tremec True Street and laid down three straight passes in the high 9s (9.868, 9.761, and 9.760)-good enough for the runner-up trophy and $100.

GoBox's like this Bow Tie are a must for die-hard Chevrolet fans. Practical and cool, GoBox's are great for storing must-need tools to and from the racetrack.

This high-flying small-block-powered 280Z is owned by John Phillips who crashed down on the nose pretty hard in Tremec True Street, costing him some front end parts, and a chance at the top spot.

John Silver wheeled his '85 S-10 to a class win in Tremec True Street with an average run of 9.705 seconds; he was only .09-second quicker than his closest competitor.

How awesome would it be to see 43 Cup cars circling around Bristol Motor Speedway? Tremec True Street and the show cars had a chance to make some laps and boy was that exciting.

Ken Kennedy won the 13-second bracket in Tremec True Street in his '88 Monte, but I think he had more fun laying a strip of rubber across the entire front stretch of the World's Fastest Half Mile. To keep Ken out of possible legal trouble, I omitted such pictures from print.

Chris Louis ran this stunning '56 Vette in Tremec True Street and was in the mid-10s. Chris parked his Vette on the high bank and ran out of gas.

David Rogers won one of your Editor's Choice Top 10 Drag Race awards in his beautiful cream '68 Nova.